This is a humorous poem in the Life: Descending / Ascending collection. Originally I wrote the poem to be part of a reading at Borders Books which was themed "Vision" and in which I imagined what it might be like to be blind in different circumstances. I was privileged to have Destiny White read one of the poems in Braille.
Interruption
It is the deepest part of night.
Resisting the exit from sleep,
eyes swollen shut,
still half within a dream,
Nature calls.
It takes some while
to transition
from sedentary rest
into just enough awareness
to sense the danger of retreat
back to the pillow.
So, the trek begins from bed
in the moonless dark.
A hand extends,
an eye's substitute
to navigate the path ahead--
past armoire
past door jamb
trembling, reaching for
the blinding light.
It is within this faint condition,
business done,
that comes another invitation--
the lure of sinking back to
dark oblivion,
supplanted
by the pen.
Into the unseen dawn,
scratches on a page
recount
a journey won--
one more day on Earth,
one more sun.
from Life: Descending / Ascending
Alice Shapiro (c) 2010
The songs and art in this book are about our collective emergence after the pandemic and trauma of the last few years - comprised of 5 collections: World as Refuge, Where We Live, In Our Hands, Rhythms of Change and What We See & Sow.
Share
Print
Save
Follow
Unexpected subject matter, so fresh!
Best Wishes,
Christine
Love the line "Scratches on a page" And the build up; appreciation for every new breath. Top work!